Chivas USA landed in Raleigh-Durham International Airport just after 4:30 p.m. (ET) and immediately left for the team’s hotel in Cary, NC, ahead of their Fourth Round game against the Carolina RailHawks in the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup scheduled for Wednesday, June 12 at 4:15 p.m. (PT) at Wakemed Soccer Park.

Upon their arrival at the hotel, Chivas headed to their rooms to get ready for a short activation session to stretch their bodies after spending more than five hours in a plane.

The session began passing a small ball around the ballroom to elevate their cardiovascular fitness before heading into some stretching. The short workout ended with a team building and critical thinking exercise called “handcuffs”. Paired up, each player was wearing a string attached to their wrist and was linked to their partner. The objective of the exercise was to detach themselves from one another without taking their handcuffs off. After several attempts, tons of thinking and laughs, the players were given the key to their escape.

If the Goats come out victorious on Wednesday night, they will advance to the Quarterfinal where they will visit the winner of the Real Salt Lake vs. Charleston Battery game on Wednesday, June 26.

Meanwhile, back at home….

Remaining Goats Continue Their Daily Duties at Home

A small group of Chivas USA players who did not make the Monday morning trip to North Carolina took to The Home Depot Center’s Field 6 for a training session starting at approximately 11 a.m. The squad first completed about 20 minutes of warm-ups in the gym and continued doing so on the pitch, as they ran through short conditioning and agility drills.

The tempo of the session was then elevated when the players competed in a version of torito that consisted of two players battling for possession in the middle of the pack while being supported by those on the outskirts of the drill with one-touch distribution.

Afterwards, the group completed a three-on-two drill inside the box with the objective of finishing the threat. The three attacking players would begin with one member inside the arc with a teammate on each wing. The two defensive players – with a goalkeeper in goal – looked to prevent the ball from being distributed cleanly inside the box and not allow the attackers to get off a shot. The drill then consisted of a three-on-three matchup with the same objectives on both sides of the ball.

The session then concluded with a team jog around the pitch before breaking out into a group stretch.